The stairs in the woods
by Skovko
Summary: Phoenix walks through the woods a lot to clear her mind from her chaotic life and one day she comes by something that was never there before: a staircase. 25 steps leading up to nothing but when she goes up there, she does find something, or rather someone. (Never been much into creepypastas but I find this one kind of beautiful so I decided to try doing my own spin on it.)
1. Damned or blessed

If it wasn't because that she knew she hadn't been drinking at all that day, she would have sworn she was drunk. This couldn't be happening. It was impossible. She knew for a fact it wasn't there the day before. It had never been there before and she would know. She knew these woods inside out and she would walk through there almost on a daily basis to clear her head for everything that was going on in her life.

She stopped at the bottom and looked up. A freaking staircase in the middle of the woods. This had to be some sort of weird joke, maybe even candid camera. She looked around but couldn't see or hear anybody. Who would come this far into the woods anyway to pull off a prank?

She slowly reached her hand forward, actually expecting the staircase to disappear like a fata morgana. She let out a little sound of surprise as she felt the wooden railing connect with her fingers. It really was there. A staircase leading up to nowhere. She counted the steps as her eyes moved up. 25 in total. She giggled as it made absolutely no sense.

She moved her fingers forward, spreading out her whole hand to get a good grip on the railing. She looked around one last time to be absolutely sure she couldn't spot anyone ready to jump out and laugh. No one was there. She lifted her foot and placed it on the first step. Slowly she walked upwards, her hand sliding up the railing as she took one step at the time. She reached the top and took in the woods from a higher ground.

"I'll be damned," she said at the beautiful sight.  
"Or you'll be blessed," a dark voice sounded.

She jumped and looked at the man beside her with fearful eyes. Where had he come from? How could he have moved up the stairs so fast without her hearing it? He chuckled as he saw how he had startled her and then he sent her a warm smile. Something about his eyes made her relax and she returned his smile with a little one on her own.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you," he said.  
"Where did you come from?" She asked.  
"I was always here," he answered.  
"No one was here when I walked up those stairs," she said.  
"Maybe you weren't looking hard enough," he said.

She shook her head and giggled again. He was a weird man but there was a charm to him she couldn't deny. If he wanted to play mind games, she would let him. That didn't mean she had to fall for it.

"What's your name?" He asked.  
"Phoenix," she answered.  
"Ah, burned to death, risen from the ashes again," he said.  
"Right now I just feel like burning," she said.  
"You'll rise again," he reached over to touch her cheek and she found herself leaning into his touch. "You'll rise up even more beautiful than ever."  
"You got a way with words, mister," she said.  
"So I've been told," he chuckled. "I'm Roman."  
"The Roman empire," she fired back after his Phoenix comment. "Are you a warrior from the old times or maybe even a conqueror?"  
"I'm everything I need to be and everything you need to be near right now," he answered.  
"Right," she laughed. "You're a weird one."  
"And yet you don't run away," he said.

He kept her eyes locked with his and she couldn't look away. Maybe he was right. Maybe he was everything she needed to be near right now. Whatever he was, or whoever he was, she felt weirdly attracted to him.

"Will you come back to see me?" He asked.  
"If you want me to," she answered.  
"I want you to," he said and reached for a lock of her hair, slowly twirling it around his fingers. "I'll make you rise up again, Phoenix."  
"I haven't burned down completely yet," she said.  
"Not yet," he said lowly. "But you will."

She quickly took a step backwards and gave him a hard stare. How dare he? He didn't know anything about her and still it felt like he knew everything, as if he could see right into her mind and soul, as if he knew exactly what was going on inside her.

"Don't be a stranger," he said, sending her on her way with those words.

She just nodded, suddenly lost for words, before making her way back down the 25 steps. She could feel how he stared at her all the way down. His eyes were burning into the back of her head. She heard the leaves crackling under her feet as she started walking away. She only took a few steps before turning around to say something. She stood there with her mouth open, not believing her eyes for the second time this day. The staircase was gone.


	2. Guardian angel

"Don't look so sad, baby," her mom said.  
"I'm sorry, mom. I can't help it," Phoenix said.  
"I know, baby," her mom said.

Her mom reached her hand up to touch her daughter's cheek. Her hand was cold as always and Phoenix put her own hand on top of it to warm it. It broke her heart to see her once strong mother lie in a hospital bed, barely a shadow of the woman she used to be.

"What's troubling you, baby?" Her mom asked.  
"You, mom," Phoenix answered.  
"I know you, baby. Something else is on your mind," her mom said.

Phoenix sighed and moved her mom's hand away from her cheek. She took it in both her hands and rested them on the covers on top of her mom.

"Something happened yesterday in the woods. Something unnatural. I'm not even sure if it was real or not," she said.  
"Tell me, baby," her mom spurred her on softly.  
"You're gonna think I'm crazy. There was a staircase in the middle of the woods. I walked up the stairs and met a man on the top," Phoenix said.  
"You liked him, didn't you?" Her mom smiled.

Phoenix let out a laughter and shook her head.

"So typical you, mom," she laughed. "You don't care about me finding a freaking staircase in the middle of the freaking woods. No, you care about the man I met."  
"You know I've had my share of weird things happening in my life. Maybe you are crazy but who cares? Real or not, if you like this man, talk to him. You could use someone to help you with this heavy burden," her mom said.  
"You always see the good in things," Phoenix said.  
"Who knows? Maybe he's your guardian angel," her mom said.

Two hours later she found herself back at the spot, looking up the staircase. It was there again. It was just like the day before. No one was on top and yet she felt him. He was there. She just couldn't see him. With a brave little smile on her face she made her way upstairs, looking out at the woods.

"You came back," he said.

Her smile grew a little wider as she turned to face him. His dark brown eyes stared straight into hers while he smiled back at her.

"How's your mom?" He asked.  
"How do you know about my mom?" She asked surprised.  
"I know everything," he answered.

She took a step closer to him while searching his eyes for something, some sort of answer, but she couldn't find it.

"Who are you?" She asked.  
"I told you that yesterday. I'm Roman," he answered.  
"That's not what I meant," she said.

He bowed his head to get closer to her while his hand went up in her hair, sending shivers down her spine as he pulled his fingers through it.

"Once you're ready to know, you'll ask the right question," he said.

She closed her eyes and let out a little whimper as she felt his fingers run down her neck.

"Are you like some sort of angel?" She asked.  
"Is that what you see me as?" He asked.

She opened her eyes and looked into his brown ones. What did she see him as? She wasn't sure. All she knew was that she liked what she saw and what she felt. She liked being near him.

"You're a sweetheart," she said.

He let out a loud laugh and let go off her.

"I've been called many things over the years but never sweetheart," he smiled widely. "I'll take it."

She blushed slightly and looked down to hide it. He didn't call her out on it and she was grateful for that. She steadied herself and looked back up at him. Her eyes were wet but she managed to keep the tears from falling.

"She's dying," she said.  
"I know," he said.  
"I know I'm a grown woman and I'm supposed to be able to handle losing my mom but I can't help but feel like a 5 year old kid again when I see her lying in that bed," she said.  
"I can feel you burning. I felt it for a long time. Your flaming soul called for me. I just wasn't sure if you were ready to see me," he said.  
"Who are you?" She asked again.  
"I'm just a man willing to listen," he said and smiled.  
"Like I said, you're a sweetheart," she smiled back at him. "I gotta go now though."  
"I'll see you around, Phoenix," he said.

She smiled and nodded, already knowing she would come back again. This man already had a strong grip on her and she couldn't fight it. She knew she needed to see him again. Maybe her mom was right. Maybe he was her guardian angel.


	3. Not ready

"Everything's gonna be alright," he said.

He placed an arm around her shoulders and held her close to his side while they both stood on top of the stairs and looked out on the woods. It never seized to amaze her how incredible warm his skin was and she always leaned into his touch, wanting more.

"You're always so sure of everything," she said.  
"You see, everything's gonna turn out just the way it's supposed to," he said.  
"And how is it supposed to be?" She asked.

She let out a loud sigh and he gently squeezed her shoulder.

"It's not fair, you know. She wasn't supposed to get sick. She isn't supposed to die already. I'm not supposed to deal with this shit already. I don't wanna be alone," she fought back the tears.  
"You're not alone. You found me," he said.  
"Are you even real?" She asked.  
"I'm here. That's all that matters," he answered.

She pushed his arm away. For the first time she felt slightly angry at this strange man she had come to be so fond of. He had been her calm in her stormy life and yet he also felt like a crazy hurricane about to tear everything apart.

"Yes, it matters!" She sounded more angry than she meant to. "Am I losing my god damn mind here?"  
"You won't lose me," he said just as calmly as he always spoke.  
"You don't get it. It's been..." She quickly counted the days in her mind. "...nine days of me coming here, walking up a freaking staircase in the middle of the woods and everytime I go down again, it disappears. It fucking disappears! Where do you go to? Are you even here?"

He placed his hands on her cheeks, gently stroking them with his thumbs, calming her down instantly. He bowed down to get into eye level with her and she let out a little mewl, wanting nothing more than for him to kiss her right in that moment.

"I'm here. I was always here. You just weren't ready to see me before," he said.  
"Where do you go everytime I walk away?" She whispered.  
"Nowhere. I'm always here," he said and smiled. "I'll always be here for you."

She leaned forward slowly, hoping he would allow her the kiss she craved so bad. Instead he leaned back up, standing tall above her, still smiling down at her.

"Go now. Your mother needs you," he said.

Frustrated she turned around and walked down the stairs. He always did that. He drew her right in just to send her on her way again, leaving her wanting more. More of this, more of him.

"Phoenix!" A voice called out to her as she walked down the hallway towards her mother's room.

She turned around to see the familiar face of one of the many doctors. He strode fast towards her and gave her a comforting look that she didn't like seeing in that moment.

"Before you go in there," he started.  
"Tell me," she demanded.  
"She's taken a toll for the worse. She probably won't even notice you're in there," he said.  
"How long does she have left?" She asked, trying to be brave.  
"Not long. A few days maybe if you're lucky," he answered.

He placed a hand on her shoulder and she just stared at it. It wasn't warm like Roman's hand and right now she wanted to feel him more than ever.

"I'm sorry," he said.  
"Yeah, me too," she whispered.

He squeezed her shoulder and went away again. She sighed heavily before making her way into her mother's room. She couldn't fight the tears anymore as she saw her mother lying there with her eyes closed, asleep and drugged up on as much medicine as her body could take so she was kept as painfree as possible.

"Mom," she cried. "Don't leave me. Please, mom. I'm not ready to lose you."


	4. What are you?

She was about to go out of her mind. Her mother was so close to saying goodbye, leaving her for good, and Roman had broken his word to her. The staircase wasn't there the next day or the day after. She felt like a lost kid, lost from her mother, lost from the man she now knew she loved, alone in the world, burning down faster than ever before.

On the third day her mother died. She sat by the bed, holding her hand, watching her take her last breath and then nothing. Silence. Cold, cruel, hard, unforgiving silence. She saw the doctors move around, saw how their lips moved as they looked at her, but all she heard was silence.

"Roman," she whispered.

She let go off her mother's hand. There was nothing more she could do for her now. She was gone. Her mother had left her. She walked out of the hospital in a daze, making her way through town, finally walking into the woods 35 minutes later. She kept walking until she was at the spot. Still the staircase wasn't there.

"Where are you?" She asked lowly.

She looked around, waiting to see him or hear him. She just wanted to feel his comforting hands. Still she got nothing but silence in return. Not even the birds would make a sound.

"Where are you?" She screamed as loud as she could. "Where the fuck are you? You said you'd always be here for me!"

She whirled around, screaming, watching, hoping to find something to cling on to. She fell to her knees, sobbing and shaking, holding her arms around herself since no one was there to hold her. A few seconds passed like that and then she felt it. She felt him. She turned her head to look over her shoulder, seeing the staircase finally was there. Still crying she crawled to it, forcefully pulling herself up to stand with her hands on the railing, slowly taking the steps one at the time until she reached the top.

"Ready to rise from the ashes?" He asked.

She turned around and found herself being wrapped tightly in his embrace. He held her close, not saying another word, just letting her cry into his chest until her tears finally ran dry.

"Who are you?" She asked, a question she had asked several times before.  
"How many times must I answer that?" He asked.

She looked up at him, her wet eyes begging him to release her from the pain.

"What are you?" She asked.

The smile that crept up in his face indicated that she had finally asked the right question. Instead of getting an answer, he wrapped his hand around her neck and bowed his head. His lips ghosted over her skin, so close to connecting without actually doing it, over her collarbone, over her shoulder, over her neck. She whimpered as she felt the outlines of his lips without him actually pressing them into her.

"Please," she whispered.  
"I can't stay here with you," he said.

She knew she was crossing a line she shouldn't but she couldn't stop herself. Wherever he was going, she wanted to go too. He was a sweetheart, her guardian angel. Surely he would never hurt her.

"Take me with you," she said.

He let out a little hum of satisfaction and she knew she had said the right words to seal her fate. His lips ghosted up her jaw and then finally they landed on hers. His hand tightened on her neck as he devoured her.

She wrapped her arms around him and got lost in the kiss. She felt everything move around her and she knew everything was changing. The first thing she noticed was how everything got warmer, hot like fire, then the sounds of flames roaring and people screaming. Screams of pain, screams of torment. And then the feeling of utter fear flushed through her.

She tore herself away from him and looked into his now black eyes, a devilish smirk on his face, and finally she looked around to see the fires and the people being tortured by foul creatures. She looked back at him scared. He had tricked her. He wasn't her angel. He was the opposite.

"What is this place? What are you?" She asked fearfully.  
"I think you know," he answered.


End file.
